“(Alberto) came to apologize to me, that means a lot,” said Schleck, who wears the best young rider’s white jersey. “That shows he’s a champion and that he has character.”

Contador was roundly criticized for attacking Schleck when the yellow jersey dropped his chain about 3km from the Balès summit. By the time Schleck remounted his chain and chased over the summit, he lost all hope of defending the yellow jersey.

Contador was booed again Tuesday in Pau when he was awarded the yellow jersey, but Schleck called out to fans to respect the Tour race leader.